"Can you hear us now?" Four Clevelanders set out to change Talk Radio
In early 2013, when Collinwood resident Darvio “The Kingpin” Morrow and Brittany Williams had a downtown meeting with executives from Salem Communications-owned WHK-AM, they had no idea that this would lead them down the path of potentially changing talk radio in Cleveland – and the nation.
“I was originally supposed to be working with someone else,” said Darvio. “I had known Brittany a little bit from some mutual friends we had, but we weren't really close at all at the time. So the two of us were in this meeting, and I was thinking that I was going to be working with someone else and that Britt was just the conduit, and all of a sudden, plans change, we have a time slot, and now we have to figure out what to do with it.”
What came out of constant conversations between Darvio and Brittany afterward, along with the addition of Doug Magill and “THE” Andre Cato to the fold, was a show that could revolutionize the talk radio industry. “I knew I wanted to do something different. I knew I didn't want to do the standard AM radio talk show,” said Darvio. “Brittany had introduced me to Doug, who is a talk radio veteran and he kinda just encouraged me to be fearless with what I wanted to do and to follow my vision.”
That vision became “The Avenue.”
The Avenue is a new concept in talk radio. It combines the comedy and pop culture elements of the Hot Talk genre, which is typically heard on FM stations (Elvis Duran, Tom Joyner, Russ Paar, etc.) with the traditionally more news and issues-oriented shows often heard on AM radio.
“The Avenue is culture and entertainment news with a fresh perspective and new, local voices,” said Brittany.
“We have some outrageous conversations but then at a moment's notice, we can flip it,” Darvio added. “Whether it's an interview or serious discussion about something news-related or political, we can show our consciousness and give our perspective.”
Another important element to The Avenue is the weekly interviews featured on the show. “The Avenue is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about what is happening in the areas of culture and entertainment in Northeast Ohio,” said Doug. “We are blessed with the opportunity to talk about things that make our area richer and more interesting.” In an era in which most radio stations are moving away from broadcasting anything local, The Avenue's goal is to take local things and make them national. “The Avenue is a vision manifested,” said Andre. “It is another opportunity to give the nation and the globe access to Cleveland and its rich, wonderful people and culture.”
The path to the show's September 22nd launch date has already been historic. “We were downtown one night with a great professional photographer, Justin Ketchem, and we were doing a photo shoot for the show,” said Darvio. “We were outside on East 4th Street and the buzz that we created in that moment was unbelievable. I whispered to Britt that I don't think I'd ever seen a new show on AM talk radio do the things that we're doing. Photo shoots, YouTube promo videos set to pop music and launch parties are the norm for a show guaranteed to loosen up the often stodgy talk radio genre. “We're confident that our show is really going to shake up Cleveland talk radio,” said Brittany.
The heavy dose of culture and entertainment, with a dash of hard news, is unique for a genre that usually does the opposite. “I look at this as a chance for me to learn a lot about what is happening in culture and entertainment,” said Doug. “I get a chance to hang out with some pretty cool people and hope that some of that rubs off on me.” The culture aspect is what creates the opportunity for other Clevelanders to use The Avenue as a platform to access the mainstream audience. “The show serves as a chance for Cleveland-based artists, social movements, and cultural institutions to influence the world with their unique perspective,” said Andre.
The Avenue also has national aspirations. “No question, we want to be syndicated”, said Darvio. “Our goal is to be nationally syndicated from Cleveland. We want to talk to national people but also give our actors, our actresses, our musicians, our athletes, our politicians, an opportunity to introduce themselves to the masses.”
They have already seen some national interest, as several online radio station owners around the country are chomping at the bit for the opportunity to air the show.
The hosts of the Avenue are probably looking forward to the show's launch date as much as their growing fanbase is. “We are excited at the opportunity to meet and interview some of the most dynamic people in the worlds of culture and entertainment,” said Doug. “The dynamics of the team are fascinating and will lead to some pretty interesting interchanges.”
The Avenue debuts Sunday night, September 22nd at 9pm on AM 1420, WHK.
Visit the Avenue online at www.theavenueradio.com
Darece Daniels
Collinwood resident for 33 years!